Zuri's 1st Pumpkin Carving..

Ok, not really her first, since she didn't actually carve the pumpkin.  Instead she played with her cousin's while I carved her first pumpkin!

Here are a few pictures from the day...

Pedro's pumpkin..

REAL CRAWLING...!

What a busy week with Milestones!  Zuri is now (finally!) crawling up on all four's.  She has been very close, but finally she gave it a go today.

She has discovered that my stuffed animal barriers are EASILY crawled over, or thrown in to the middle of the room, as with her giant frog.  Nothing will stop her from getting to her new favorite thing....CORDS!  Cords for fans, cords for printers, for camera's...if there is a cord, she will find it.

When given a choice to crawl to her current favorite xylophone and caterpillar or the dog leash, the dog leash wins!

9 month stats..and another Milestone

We went to the doctor for our 3rd appointment for the week!  UGH!  One for diagnosing her sickness.  The second one for seeing if rash spreading was from an allergic reaction to medicine, or just rash spreading (it was the latter).  The third one was for her 9 month well check (9 month 10 days).

I think Zuri had lost some weight because of how little she was eating while she was sick.  On Monday she weighed 19lbs 4oz.  On Tuesday, 19lbs 6oz and Thursday for her checkup she was 19lbs 9oz.  So, clearly she was just putting her normal weight back on, so she probably weighs even more than that.

Then the nurse measured her height.  She took the measurement and then left to do the paperwork.  She came back in and said that can't be right, I need to remeasure her!   So, screaming fit again, we did the measurements again.  It came back just slightly smaller.  The doctor then came in and was reviewing her growth charts and said..hmm..her height must have been measured incorrectly.  Instead of following her growth chart she shot STRAIGHT UP!  So she said she wanted to redo the measurement again.  Ok...another screaming fit later, we had like a very tiny difference.  She was shocked Zuri had grown so much! She grew 3.75 inches in 3 months (again, I think they may have measured her a bit short at 6 months). Which is unheard of at this age.  I assume this will slow down soon, as that is a lot of growing!

Her 9 month stats:
19lbs 9oz, 71%
30.5 inches length, 99.77%
17.5 head circumference, 65%


Compared to her 6 month stats:
16lbs 9oz, 62%
26.75 inches length; 84%
16.5 inches head; 33%



That is a 3lb gain (with the sickness), 3.75 inches grown and 1 inch bigger head circumference.

She asked how much does she eat and I explained that she eats a WHOLE waffle for breakfast and some fruit.  Half a grilled cheese for lunch and about 12oz total of milk at lunch.  (The rest of the meals are rather small compared to these).  She said that is A LOT of food and was impressed that she could eat so much.  I figure it is because she takes after her parents, that also eat a lot of food (I am known for being able to eat two foot long subs).

Her new milestone was reached on Tuesday.  I was watching her on her video and it appeared she went from laying on her back, to her stomach to sitting!  I wasn't sure because it was just off camera.  Wednesday, she did it for Pedro and my mom, I still had not seen her do it.  We lowered her crib because we were worried about pulling up on it, now that she can go from laying to sitting.  This morning I went in and TA-DA!  She was sitting there waiting for me!  It was quite a shock to see my little girl sitting in her crib waiting.  Last night Pedro put her to bed and he said he left her sitting and went to get her sleep sack and came back up and she was standing, holding her crib rails.  That doesn't surprise me too much, as this is what she does when she wakes from her nap and I sit her down while I get her clothes ready:

She was a sick baby here, with lots of drool...and medicine on her pajamas, but you get the idea!

First REAL Sickness...

We have had a very unhappy sick baby!  This was pretty much her look the ENTIRE day on Sunday.  Saturday she was starting to be fussy.  I thought maybe a tooth was coming in again.  Sunday morning she was super fussy so I gave her some motrin.  Then she was still fussy and wouldn't eat, so I started wondering if she was sick.  I gave her a kiss on her forehead and she was on FIRE!  I took her temperature and it was 101.8, 25 minutes after the motrin.  UGH!  Of course the day she is really sick, I have to go to games a majority of the day.  So, I gave her a bottle and rocked her and she fell asleep quickly in my arms (very abnormal) and only drank a few ounces.  I laid her down and left for my games.  Luckily, she slept for nearly 3 hours.  She woke in a bit better mood, but still had a fever of about 100.  Then she started getting a strange rash on her butt.  It is like pinpricks all over.  I rotated motrin and tylenol the rest of the day and the fever stayed around 100.  Then I gave her a bath and she started shivering.  I laid her down at bedtime and she woke two hours later, dripping sweat.  I thought maybe her fever had broken.  She woke again at 2:15am and she was flushed and very hot.  I gave her more medicine and she slept until morning.

 Monday she woke up and was very fussy still.  Her fever had gone down but she was still very unhappy.  She would take a bite of food and then start crying and not eat anymore.  I knew her throat must hurt.  Then her rash was getting worse!  So, I decided a trip to the doctor was needed.

The nurse and the doctor both immediately were thinking strep.  I didn't know you could have a rash with strep.  They said the only strange thing is that her fever had dissipated.  Her quick tests were negative, but they said if it wasn't strep it was something they would treat the same way.  So, they gave me antibiotics and an ointment for her rash.  They told me to give her cold foods and soft foods.  Well, she won't let me feed her from a spoon and she doesn't seem to want to take a pouch either.  So, she had her first popsicle (sugar free).

Today, Tuesday, she woke crying and I went in and she took her 5oz that she had leftover from her bottle.  She finished that and started crying.  I made 4oz more and she drank that, then proceeded to cry and push me away for about 25 minutes.  I finally calmed her down and she is watching a Baby Einstein video.  Hoping she will start feeling better and look more like this baby!

9 Months!

3/4th's of her way into her first year!  Crazy!  From 8-9 months went really fast.  Probably because we were in California for almost a week of that time, but for whatever reason, it seemed really fast.

Her nickname of Dragon still holds true.  She is a feisty, independent and demanding child.  She still does not crawl, which might be part of her issue, because she knows what she wants but can't get to it.  And when we are eating, she knows which thing she wants but I have to go through all of the items she is eating to figure out which one she wants.  She will let me know it is not the right item by pinning her mouth closed, turning her head, screaming or blocking it with her arms.  I am looking forward to her crawling or walking, just so she can be happier!  But I know that it will be way more difficult for me.

Our 9 month schedule is similar to 8 months:

Awake 730ish:  Talks in crib for a bit. I come in and then offer her a bottle, sometimes she drinks some, other times she doesn't.

730-850am:  Playtime in room and Baby Einstein Video.  I allow her to play on her own for most of this time so that she can practice her crawling etc. as when I am around she will just whine.

9:00am Breakfast.  Waffles and a fruit pouch, which she usually eats most of the waffle and half a pouch.  Today she got raspberries instead of the pouch, she LOVES raspberries.

9:45am: 8oz bottle.

10:00am Nap

11:45-1215pm:  Zuri wakes from her nap.

12:45-1:45pm: Gym Daycare!  She LOVES the gym daycare.

2:00pm: 4oz Bottle/pouch snack before leaving the gym

2:15pm: Lunch.  Her lunch has been grilled cheese (or one of the dinner items listed below), an orange veggie pouch, possibly a fruit if we have one, the last few days have been kiwi, which she has liked.  This time of the day she eats and drinks A LOT!

2:50pm:  8oz bottle.

3:00pm:  Nap.

4:45-5:15pm: Zuri wakes up

5:15-6:15pm: Playtime or an outing, to the store, park or some place.

6:30pm : Dinner.  Something like, Butternut squash mac and cheese, spinach and cheese ravioli, hummus on a tortilla, more raspberries (if we have them), a veggie like carrots, green veggie pouch.

6:50pm: Bath.  One of her favorite times of the day!

7:15pm:  Bed.  She has been laying here talking until almost 8:00pm, probably why her morning wake up has been a little later.


We do have a pretty strict schedule.  It makes my life easier and her life much happier.  When she gets naps when she needs them she is HAPPY!  Now, we have times where that obviously can't happen.  Like the other day I had a lesson at 5:00pm, so she had to go with me and I had to wake her early from her nap.  She played on the floor, stole her favorite kale and apple crocodile corn things out of my bag, ate cheerios off the floor...you know fun stuff!  Her ability to go with me to lessons will be short lived as she becomes more mobile.  She loved going to Costco last night and sampling all the food, she devoured the hashbrown's they were sampling and cheese (this is where I learned she liked hummus).

A few times she has had to go to practice with me, which makes for a later night.  She really enjoys going, because she loves socializing with everyone!  But when she goes to bed late, she seems to wake up earlier in the morning.

We use a babysitter (one of my former players that is a freshman in college) one night a week when Pedro is working and I have a short practice, the babysitter gives her a bath, bottle and puts her to bed.  This has been about 50% successful.  She behaves great, but she doesn't want to take the bottle from her sometimes (she won't take the bottle from anyone but me about 50% of the time someone else tries, which is very rare occasion).  Then on Sunday's when I have games our babysitter has come when Pedro has to leave for work and takes over, usually this is during a nap time, so she just sits here and does her homework, while Zuri sleeps.  Babysitting schedule will probably change now that Pedro is going to dayshift...so we will see what type of adjustment will be needed, the downside is that this coincides with my babysitter starting official college basketball practice and games.

She has a few odd issues.  One is that she will still not let me feed her with a spoon.  So, nearly all puree's are out, except the pouch (a few times she will let me feed some of pouch on a spoon).  I have also found that if I put food on her tray and stand in the kitchen she will eat more than if I am sitting with her.  She eats and I just replenish the food on her tray.  Then if she has slowed down eating, if I go over and stand by her, I can get her to eat more with me feeding her.  She will let me feed her with my hands in this situation.  She doesn't like slippy food (pasta's, banana, kiwi), I have to feed her these foods, so we don't have them as much.

She has only one tooth, the other one is so close that I can't believe it hasn't broken the skin yet.  I'm sure that will lead to another super cranky week, I guess I am happy to have a bit of a break before that happens.

Zuri's unofficial stats (9 Month Dr's appt on the 18th):

Weight:  abt 19lbs
Height:  no idea
Pant size:  12-18 months.  (Old navy 12-18 month size is perfect! wish other brands had 12-18 months).  12month size fits pretty decent now, 18 month is too long, but rollable.
Tops:  A few 9 month tops still fit, 12 month tops otherwise.

Likes:
Books!
Gym daycare!
Raspberries
Kiwi
Cheese
Bread
Her blanket
Ball's
Rolling around (her way of getting to her toys)
Bath time
Dogs and Cats (Polar still favorite dog and loves Apollo, but Apollo won't get close!)
Kale/apple crocodile treats


Dislikes:
Other people putting her to bed
Leaving daycare (not sure if she is upset, or just hungry!)
Not being able to get something she wants
Not being able to crawl (she has slithered on her belly a few times).
Me not knowing what she wants when she is eating.
Playing alone (if she see's me).
Slippery foods
TEETHING (I also dislike this one!)

Happy 9 months!

She loves playing with the mirror in the car (buckling up, not so much).

This is how we felt after the Bronco's lost...

Enjoying probably our last 85 degree day for a while (the next day was 50 degrees).

Can I crawl?

I'm happy if you give me a kale apple crocodile!

We were jumping on the bed!

Super crabby this day...this is AFTER her nap (nap time makes for messy hair!)

Happy because she has her ball...

I don't like getting teeth...

AFTER nap, funny baby..

Super HAPPY playing in the grass after breakfast!

 Now I need to figure out what she will be for Halloween...

Pulling up...

Zuri has reached another milestone!  She has pulled herself up to standing!!!  There are not a lot of opportunities for her to do this, since she won't crawl.  But she sits on the changing table while I do her hair and this morning she decided to pull herself up.  

Then she took a nap, while Pedro was sleeping and I was at a lesson and when I came home Pedro told me that I needed to be careful with Zuri because she was trying to pull herself up on the pack and play. So, that has been lowered.  So, now she doesn't have much to pull up on.  Guess she will just have to crawl and find something to pull up on.

California!

We are back from California.  Of course when you get back home, you want to go on a vacation.  However, I'm happy to be back to our house where Zuri has more of a schedule.

Being a big girl at the Denver airport.

Sitting with Dad before we took off.

Zuri had her own seat on the way to California, she played the whole time.  Pedro and I even got to watch a movie!

Oceanside was our favorite part of the trip.  We stayed on the beach and had a nice room with an ocean view.  It is more of a beach town, but definitely not a ritzy one.  Zuri had her first experience at the beach, which was not too exciting, as she was not happy with the cold water.  It was only about 75 degrees out and we were not going swimming.

Zuri was very fussy the first two days in Oceanside.  Her first and second teeth (second is starting to come through) caused most of the issues.  We had A LOT of screaming, just to get her to take her nap. I stayed at the hotel with Zuri dealing with her teething, screaming and napping, while Pedro walked the town.

This is where she sat for breakfast in our room.  She LOVES raspberries (note stains on chair from our food).

After her morning nap on Wednesday, we took her to the San Diego Zoo.  It is an awesome zoo.  The enclosures are very nice and some of the walk areas are pretty tree covered, which makes it nice.  Kind of hard to explain, but we had a good time.

About to enter the zoo!

Not sure when she really grew out of 9 month pants, but as you can tell they are a bit short (not as short as they seem here, but still short).  Her 12 month pants fit perfectly now.

Thursday we were still in Oceanside and instead of driving to San Diego, we stayed in Oceanside.  We found this awesome breakfast place where I had an amazing egg, green chile, cheese quesadilla and Zuri had a whole grain blueberry pancake.  She really enjoyed it.  Pedro had an omelet that he DEVOURED.  It was such a nice little area, we wish we had some areas like this near us.

Then we did a street fare for dinner and took our food down to the ocean to eat.  We got some amazing cheesecake in a cup too!

Friday we checked out after Zuri napped although this is what she looked like when I went in to wake her so we could leave!

 And then we drove to Anaheim.  Anaheim is a big, dirty city.  Definitely not wanting to spend a lot of time there again.  We went to Downtown Disney and we ate at a cajun restaurant.  Where Zuri had a $10 lunch.  So expensive.  It did include celery as an appetizer (which we didn't get), grilled cheese, a side of mac and cheese (they didn't have a side of steamed veggie choice), and a pretty big ice cream sundae, which I ate. We enjoyed our meal, then walked through the rest of Downtown Disney, but had to hurry back so Zuri could nap, before our game.  We bought her Mini Mouse and she LOVES her!

We played 4 games, one Friday and Sunday and two on Saturday.  The two on Saturday were really hard for Zuri because they were right during her afternoon nap and we had to stay at the gym because there was only a one game break between the games.  It was a crazy hot gym and Zuri is very heat sensitive, so by the end of the second game, she wanted to be with me, so she ended up on the bench with me.  Then we had to hurry and get some food and then go back and put her to bed.

Sunday, Zuri stayed back with Pedro at the hotel so she could nap in the morning since our game was right during her nap time.  Of course, she refused to take a bottle from Pedro and then only napped for 45 minutes, which really doesn't even count.  Then when I got back I entertained her for a bit until it was nap time, because I wanted her to take an afternoon nap since we were flying back that night.  She took a 2.5 hour nap but still woke up grumpy.  She is definitely her father's daughter.

Zuri's seat at breakfast in Anaheim.  She enjoyed fresh waffles, oatmeal and banana for breakfast.  Making waffles is a difficult task while holding a baby (Pedro was still sleeping).  Humidity makes her hair curly.

She is definitely WANTING to crawl.  She is driving herself crazy trying.  She sees what she wants and she WANTS it.  She doesn't even really want me to get it for her.  She is close to crawling, but who knows it might be weeks before that happens.  She does have a new skill of sitting and rotating on her butt and getting something behind her.  She also rolls over a lot now.  She will be sitting, try to reach for something, fall over, try to crawl without using her legs, then get stuck and roll onto her back and give up.

The flight was right at her bedtime, because it was delayed.  Great fun.  She wasn't bad.  She was pretty good considering it was her bedtime.  She got grumpy for a few minutes, but then I settled her down after about an hour of her playing, reaching and trying to "fall off the seat" (she likes to lean forward to grab things).  She fell asleep on my lap and slept for the last 50 minutes of the flight.  She was a good baby in the airport while we waited FOREVER for our bags.

Enjoying Mini at the airport and entertaining fellow passengers!

 Then she fell asleep in the car.  She wasn't in bed until almost 11:45pm.  And she was up by about 8:00am this morning.  She is taking a nap now and then we will start our usual routine all over again!